My life with the Sullivan boys

What a year it's been, each month giving us new challenges, new joys and new heartaches. January: 5 months pregnant, I jetted off to visit my brother in LA for the weekend, only to return and rushing to the hospital to be with Dermot as he suffered an awlful bout of RSV and pneumonia. Six nights later he came home, I swear he's different. No longer able to suck his thumb and drink efficiently out of a bottle, Dermot left something at Children's Hospital that I wish we could have back. April: Owen turns four! Just days before I'm to deliver #3, we had a glorious time at his party. All his friends and classmates joined him at Pump it Up! Yipee! May: Ryan Joseph Sullivan joins our family after a day and a half of labor, one push is all it took! What a blessing! So begins the battle for sleep. August: Countless visits to and from family! Ryan had his first airplane ride at three months, thanks to uncle Bill! Ryan sleeps thru the night for the first time! September: Owen sta...

Someone I Love By Lori Hickman Someone I love relies on me in ways you will never understand. Someone I love endures pain and challenges that break my heart and renew my spirit at the same time. Someone I love is unable to advocate for themselves for things that most of us take for granted. Someone I love will never have the opportunities that every child should have. Someone I love will need unconditional love and support after I am gone - this frightens me to the core. Someone I love encounters pity, stereotyping responses, and prejudice at every turn, because they look, act, and/or learn differently than others. Someone I love has needs that require me to allow "outsiders" to have power and input in areas that should be mine alone to meet. Someone I love will continue to look to me for everything in life long after other children are able to assume a place as part of the world. Someone I love has needs that require more time and energy than I have to give. Someone I love ...

How did we get here? It was November 17th, 2006. Joe had left earlier that day for his annual hunting trip out to South Dakota. My brother had just arrived to drive up to my mom's place in McGregor, MN with me. I wanted a little help since I'd be with Owen who was 2-1/2 and Dermot who was almost four months. The car was packed, I was trying to calm Dermot down. He was trying to recover from a cold and was crying hard, something he did quite a bit in his first few months of life due to a case of reflux and pyloric stenosis(google it). I was struggling to get him to stop crying, and then, he stopped instantly. Whew, I thought. I set him down in the bouncy chair and finished putting everything in the car. I came back and looked over at Dermot and he was still in the exact position he was in before, I thought that was a bit odd so I went over to him. His eyes were fixed to the left side and he was pulsing his left hand and foot ever so slightly. I thought that was strange so I call...